IV. Notice When You Feel Most Alive
As you move through this season, you may notice that some activities create a spark of joy, bring a deep sense of peace, or help you rest easy. A song. A breath prayer. A walk in the woods. Lighting a candle. Crying with a friend.
Sometimes, the most mundane moment will literally take your breath away in this season of raw emotions.
All of these moments matter just as much as ceremonies in a modern sanctuary. They are signs that your spiritual life is taking on new shapes, sounds, and experiences. As you explore new stuff, keep in mind you don’t have to throw everything away. You can if you want to, but you’re also allowed to keep what still feels nourishing and let the rest go.
This is a great time to start a journal to jot down the things that make you feel grounded and connected. It helps to have pages to look back on during the hardest times. Your notes may expose seeds of what faith looks like in the next season.
V. Hold Space for Grieving-It’s Probably Present Already
One thing that catches a lot of my clients off guard is the overwhelming amount of grief that most experience. You may not realize how many emotions are flowing through you because grief can show up as anger, exhaustion, hyperactivity, anxiety, and even feeling super productive!
Everyone grieves differently, and each season of grief can look very different. You might be mourning the loss of a version of God who once felt safe with tears. Or angry that a church that once felt like home is looking at you with suspicion. Or even anxiously seeking a new community to replace the one you desperately miss.
That grief is real. It’s valid. And it deserves to take up as much space as needed.
Be careful not to rush to justify, explain, or rebuild it all. Moving too fast can squeeze out room to sit with your grief. (Honestly, that’s a big part of why rushing to the next thing is so attractive when we are hurting-It feels like a good way to make the pain stop.)
Keep in mind, you don’t have to “land” anywhere right now. It’s good to let yourself be tender and feel what’s coming up for you. Find a rage room or scream in the woods if it feels good. Curl up with Netflix and Ben & Jerry’s.
Let yourself fall apart, as many times as you need to. That, too, is holy work.
